Ironing machine



Sept. l5, 1931. c.. o. REEPS IRONING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Feb.21, 192s mf/.l.///////r////////////////////////// /oooooooooo oooooooooo5 Sheets-Sheet 2 o w f Q woooooooooo 0 ooo ooooo /ooo oooo wooo ooo woooooo wooo ooo wooo oo wooo www ooo woo www. ww.

C. O. REEPS IRONING MACHINE Filed Feb. 21, 1928 Sept. 15, 1931.

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OOOOOO OOGOOOOOOQOOOO OO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOQOOOOOOOOOOQOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Sept. 15,1931. c. o. REEPS IRONING MACHINE Filed Feb. 21. 1928 5 Sheets-Sheet 5Patented sept. 1s, 1931 S'UNITED* STATES PATENT OFFICE CHARLES'O.RE'ETS, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, T0lNATIONAL LAUNDRY MACHINERY COMPANY,INC., 0F WILMINGTON, DELAWARE' ACCRPORATION OF DELAWARE momma MACHINE My present invention relates vin'general to a method of and an apparatus for ironing,

and more particularly to an improved iron-` ironing isf/not assatisfactory as desired for the reason that the article is notsufliciently stretched on the buck to eliminaterwrinkles and otherirregularities therefrom. This means that the articles being'irone'd areirregularly pressed and as a result do not come out of the machine in asgood a condition as is desired.v

I propose to remedy this difficulty by providing a stationary buckhaving a convex pressing surface adapted to cooperate with a concaveironing surface in the movable pressing head. Moreover, I purposely makethe curvature of the ironing head slightly great*n er than the curvatureof the convex-ironing surface 'on the stationary buck so that when theironing head is moved into cooperation. with the buck it will serve tocontemporaneously stretch and iron the article on the buck. Then, too,it has been my observation that articles of clothing and the like whichare -ironed while in a moist or damp condition do not leave theconventional ironing machine after being ironed in a completelydrycondition, thus necessitating a subsequent drying operation which isusually accomplished by hanging the ironed article any place where itwill be cooled and dried by the natural circulation of air.

It is the aim of my invention to provide an ironing machine which notonly irons articles placed therein but also .completely dries thearticles during the ironing operation and while they are onthestationary buck.

I also find from experience that in the conventional ironing machine dueto the moist condition of the article being ironed the moisture is all`forced to the lower ,side of the article when the heated pressing headis applied thereto, which results in only the top side of the articlebeing'inished, or in other words the side subjected to the heatedironing surface. f

This type of ironing work might be satisfactory in the case of rough drywork, such as sheets and the like, but it surely is not fullysatisfactory in the case of other types of articles, of a ner nature,such for example as handkerchiefs, scarfs, etc.

I propose to provide an ironing machine adapted -to iron and finisharticles placed therein on both sides, thus completely eliminating theabove mentioned undesirable feature.

An object of my invention is to provide. an

vimproved ironing machine-of simple and inexpensive construction andadapted to turn out a much better grade of ironed work than theconventional type of machine.

' Another object of my invention resides in the provision of an ironingmachine wherein l-the-ironing is effected by thecirculationof heated airthrough the ironing buck and head of the machine.

Still another object of this invention has to ldo with the provision ofan ironing machine adapted to iron and finish articles on both sides.

A further object is the provision of an iron- -ing machine havingcooperable convex and eliminating wrinkles and any other irregularitiesin the article ironed, andthereby causing the machine to turn outahlghfgrade.

of ironed work. v

A still further object of the invention is to provide an ironing machineincluding relatively movable cooperable ironing members, one of which isadapted to have heated air forced therethrough and through thearticlebeing ironed, and the'other of which sncf tion means connected to it forwithdrawing the heated air from the article ironed so as to facilitatecooling and drying of the article.

In accordance -with the general features of the present invention, Iprovide an ironing machine including a stationary ironing buckcooperable with a movable .ironing head,

A and means, such as a blower, for forcing vzo .of which having aconcave ironing surface adapted for cooperation with the convex surfacewhereby the article being ironed therebetween is substantially stretchedvto remove wrinkles from the same, one of said surfaces being defined bya sheet of wire mesh adapted to enhance the finish applied to thearticle.

' Another feature is the provision of. filter means in the ironing headfor removing foreign matter from dthe air being circulated prior tocoming into contact with the article eing ironed.

Other objects and advanta esxof my invention will more fully appear romthe following detailed description taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, which illustrate a single embodiment thereof andin which:

Figure 1 is an end elevation of my novel ironing machine; I

- 4Figure 2 is a front view of this ironingma- `chine illustrating theconnections between it and the motor for operating the samel as well asthe connections between it and a blower for heating and drying thearticle belng chine Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional viewtaken on substantlally the line IV-x-IV of Figure 3, looking in thedirection indicated by the arrows; ,y

Figure 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken onsubstantially the line V-V of 'Figure 3`looking upwardly, and

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken on substantially the line VI--VI ofFigure 5 lookin downwardly.

n the drawings:

Like reference characters designate similar parts throughout theseveralviews.

It is thought that my novel method of ironing will be apparent from adescription of the apparatus for producing the same.

The reference character 10 designates generally a support for theironing machine including standards 11 and a top 12. Secured to thetop12 'is a stationary ironing buck designated generally by the referencevthe standards 11.

character 13 cooperable with a movable ironing head 14 which is carriedby spaced arms l5 secured to the standards 11 of the support 10.

The stationary ironing buck 13- includes a longitudinal hollow casting17 in which is a heating chamber 18. The upper part'of this buck 1sprovided with a convex top 20.

That is to say, I provide the stationary buck -with an ironing surfacewhich is of a prerpedestal 23 which is in turn fastened to the top 12 ofthe support 10. Extending through the bore 24 of the pedestal 23 is arelatively large air pipe 25 which has its upper end threaded into the'bottom of the casting 17 and disposed -in communication with chamber 18in the stationary buck 13.

As shown in Figure 2, this pipe 25 extends downwardly through a suitableopening in the top 12 of the support 10 and between A The lower end ofthe pipe 25 is bent laterally and is disposed in communication with theinlet side 27 of a conventional air blower 26. The discharge 28 of thisblower is connected by 'pipe 29 to a furnace 30 which may be heated byany suitable means. Disposed in communication with the top of thefurnace 30 is an air pipe 31 which extends upwardly and is disposed incommunication with thel interior'of the movable ironing head 14 as willbe more fully explained hereinafter.

u The movable or pressure head 14 comprises a longitudinal hollowcasting 34 (Figures 5 and 6)-' which defines an air chamber 35. Thebottom of this casting'34 is provided with av predetermined transversecurvature which is slightly greater than the curvature of the convex top20 ofthe stationary buck. In other words, I provide the casting 34 ofthe ironing head 14 with a concave bottom 36 cooperable with the convextop 20 of the ironing head. This bottom 36 defines a concave lroningsurface and is provided with perforations or openings 37. Also it is tobe noted that this concave bottom has a layer of porous or filteringmaterial 38 disposed thereover which is covered by a sheet of wire mesh39. The layer 38 may be made of muslin or the like and serves to preventdirt and soot from vbeing forced into the article being ironed by theair under pressure in the head. The purpose of the mesh is to enhancethe finish applied to the upperl side of the article being ironed. Thissheet `of wire mesh may preferably be made of a highly polished sheet ofNo. 200 mesh (200 perforations to the inch) which has been heavilynickel plated.

I find that by nickel plating the mesh it results in the holes beinAreduced to almost pin holes whichare su cient to allow air to circulatetherethrough without appreciably interfering with .the polished ironingsurface aiorded by the mesh.

Also at this time attention is directed to the fact that the concaveironing surface of the pressing head 14 is provided with a curvaturewhich is slightly greater than that of the Iconvex top ,12 of the buck13. -This means thatV as the head 14 is moved into cooperation with thearticle on the buck 13 it will cause the article to be thoroughlystretched thereon, thus eliminating wrinkles and other irregularities inthe article being ironed.

Secured to the top of casting `34 are a pair of spaced arms 41 which areformed integral with a common pivotal member "42 journaled at its endsin the two arms 15 secured to the support 10. In-Figure 6 it will beobserved that the member 42 is provided with a hollow or air chamber 43disposed in communication with the upper end of pipe 31. This upper endof the p1pe'31 extends through one of the journaled ends of member42'and is not secured to the member 42 so that relative movement captake place between member 42 and the pipe 31 asthe ironing head 14 ismoved into and out-of cooperation with the stationary buck 13. Y Alsothreaded into the member 42 are three pipes, 44, 45, and 46 which extendthrough openings in the side of the casting 34 and into the air chamber35. The pipe 45 is disposed in an' intermediate position with respect tothe pipes 44 and 46. The free endsof pipes 44 and 46 are bent laterallyin opposite directions so as to be' disposed in communication with theends of the air chamber 35 as shown in Figure 6.

Alsoformed integral with the member 42 are a pair of spaced parallelarms 50 in which are journaled the ends/of a pin orshaft 51. It will benoted that the` intermediate portion of this shaft 51 is forme`dsquare.-This shaft 51 has a central opening 52 through which extends the upperend 'of a rod 53. The extreme upper end of rod 53 is provided with ahead 54 adapted to engage the top of shaft 51.

Surrounding the rod 53 below the shaft 51 is a spring 55, the lower endof which abuts. a washer or shoulder 56 secured to an intermediateportion of rod 53. The extreme lower end of rod 53 is pivotallyconnected to the free end of a crank arm 57 which is secured to a shaft58 rotatably carried by spaced brackets 59 and 60. Secured to this shaftbetween the brackets 59 and 60 (Figures 1 and 2) is a wprm-wheel61 whichmeshes with a worm 62 secured to motor shaft63 driven by an elec tricmotor 64 of conventional construction. f The worm 62 is connected to anintermediate in spaced brackets 65 and 66 between which the worm isdisposed.

I desire it understood that although I have illustrated the aircirculating means as being provided with a heater independent of theironing machine for the purpose of simplifying the description ofmyironing machine,

the invention is no t to be thus limited for obviously a heating unitsuch as that disclosed in my aforesaid co-pending application could beplaced in either one of the ironin members ofthe present machine forheatlng the 'air being circulated.

The operation of my ironing machine 1s briefiy as follows:

The normal or inoperative position of the ironing head 14 and theassociated operating mechanism is shown in dotted lines in Figure 1.

Upon the operation of motor 64 throu h suitable switch mechanism (notshown), t e crank 57 is moved 'to the uppermost position showny in fulllines in Figure 1 and through the rod 53,v and the associated mechanismcauses the ironing head 14 to be moved down into cooperation with thestationary buck 13. Prior to the lowering of the head 14 an article isplaced on the buck and is held in place on the convex surface by thesuction in chamber 18. This article on buck 13 is thereto the fact thatthe head 14 has a concave ironing surface of a'slightly greatercurvature than that of the convex top of stationary buck 13, the articleis substantially stretched on the buck during the ironing operation.

The ironing of thel article is effected by heated air forced by blower26 from the furnace 30 into the chamber 35 of the head 14. This airapplies heat to the highly polished sheet of`mesh 39 which irons 'andfinishes the article. Also through the means of the suction' pipe 25which is connected to the intake side of the blower 26, the heated airforced through the article is sucked away from the article and' backinto the furnace 30, thus augmenting and facilitating the cooling anddrying ofthe article being ironed. By thus drying the bottom side ofthetarticle, the ironing surface of mesh 39 is enabled to cause bothsides of the article to be given a soft finish. v

That is to say, the circulating air removes the moisture from thearticle and thus prevents the baking of water in the article whereby thearticle is not stiffened or given va hard finish.

Moreover, the suction of the convex surface of the buck serves toprevent irregularities from being formed in the article by the iron, andalso enables a soft finish to be given the lower side of the article byremoving moisture-therefrom: Y i

Now; I desire it understood that although I have illustratedanddescribed in detail the 65 portion of the shaft 63'which is journalledpreferred form of my invention, the invenlos A appended claims.

tion is not to be thus limited but only in so far as defined by thescope and spirit of the I claim as my invention:

1. In combination, in an ironing machine, a pair of relatively movableand cooperable ironing members, means for enabling one of said membersto be moved into 'and out of cooperation with the other of said members,one of said members being provided with a convex ironing surface and theother of said members being provided with a concave ironing surface,said concave ironing surface having a curvature slightly greater thanthat of the convex surface, whereby an article to be ironed placedtherebetween, will be stretched during the ironing operation. v

2. In combination, in an ironing machine, a pair of relatively movableand cooperable ironing members, means for circulating fluid through oneof said members and through thearticle being ironed therebetween to.iron

and dry the article, and filter means in said member for filteringforeign matter such as soot from said fluid being circulated prior tothe fluid coming into contact with the article being ironed. o

8. In combination, in an ironing machine, a pair of relatively movableand cooperable ironing members, and means for circulating fluid throughone of said members and through thed article being ironed therebetweento iron and dry the article, one of said members having an ironingsurface defined by a polished sheet of perforated material adapted to beheated by the fluid forced therethrough for ironing and applying a highni'sh to the article being ironed.

4. In combination in an ironing machine,

apair of cooperable and relatively movable ironing membersforfreceiving'between them and engaging an article to be ironed, andmeans for applying-heated air to said members to provide heat forcooperating. with said ironing members to iron the article, said meanscomprising a blower connected to force the heated air into one of-saidmembers and to simultaneously suck the air out of .the other memberwhereby dried during the ironing operation'.

5. In combination with an ironing m-a.-

chine, a pair of cooperable ironing members for receiving between themand engaging an gle ,ironingoperatiom .1

the article issubstantially all moisture vfrom the articlesimultaneously with the ironing operation. 7. The process of ironing anarticle which consists in applying pressure thereto and subjecting oneside of the article to preheated air to supply heat for cooperating withthe pressure to iron the article, and at the same time subjecting thearticle to. suction for drawing the heated air therethrough to effectdrying thereof while being ironed.

8. The process of ironing an article which consists in applying pressurethereto and stretching the article, and at the same timecirculatingheatedy gas through vthe article to supply heat forcooperating with the pressure to iron the article and to-dry the articlewhile being ironed. l

9. The process of ironing an article which consists in applying pressureto the same, andv while under such pressure subjecting one side only ofthe article to a source of heated gas under pressure to provide heat forcooperating` with the pressure toiron the artic-le, andV at the sametime subjecting the other side of the article to vsuction to augment thepassage `of'heated gas through the article to dry the same while beingironed.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name at Chicago, CookCounty, Illinois.

CHARLES O. REEPS.

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